SABL
by Madness King
Summary: The follow up to my one-shot, Sypher. Sypher Woods is a lone wolf. After losing almost everyone in his family, he's been traveling, searching for Grimm to hunt down and kill. Not only Grimm, but the White Fang as well, and the citizens of Vale begin to fear that after they are gone, he will come after them next. But after being taken against his will to Ozpin, how will he change?
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys, Madness King here with the new SABL story I promised. Now, I know I also promised to work on "Into Kingdom Hearts" and "Astral," but I just couldn't help myself. Since our internet went down AGAIN I had enough time and less distractions to actually work on my stories. But this, I was able to finish Chapters 1 and 2, and I'm already working on Chapter 3. So I hope you guys enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Oh, and Chapter 2 gets a tad emotional, just fair warning. Without further ado, R&amp;R, PM, and Enjoy!**

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A dark, peaceful night in the city of Vale, that's how it has been for countless generations. The citizens have nothing to fear, for they know they are protected by the Huntsmen and Huntresses. Humans with the power to slay the evil forces of the Grimm, Huntsmen and Huntresses use weapons combined with Dust, a powerful substance that contains "nature's wrath" as some would call it, to repel the dark forces and keep humanity alive.

But they forget so easily, that Huntsmen and Huntresses are just like any other man, woman, or child; they can be killed.

To one individual in particular, he witnessed this truth first-hand. A dark figure leaps across the rooftops, barely making a sound. He stops at the corner of a block, and surveys the street below. So far everything looks peaceful, but darkness is always close when such conditions are met.

Just as he thought, members of the White Fang, skulking in the alleyways. The White Fang were a group of Faunus - humanoids with animal traits and features such as the horns, ears, or tails of an animal - that were once peaceful, but eventually turned into a terrorist group. The figure on the rooftop didn't hate the Faunus, he was once friends with quite a few Faunus children, but the White Fang were mostly thugs now, and gave Faunus a bad reputation.

He observed the group as it came out of the shadows and sneaked their way towards the Dust shop around the corner. They shot open the door, aiming for the lock, and broke the door down. They were inside in a matter of seconds. The figure looked closer at the scene unfolding, and noticed there was a shopkeeper still inside. One of the White Fang held a pistol up to his face while he carefully took out crystals and placed them into a suitcase. On the side of the shop, he could see more White Fang, loading powdered Dust into canisters. He knew not to interfere, not yet. He had to wait for them to leave before he could make his move.

One of the White Fang, a grunt by the looks of him, stepped outside the door and kept watch. It was time. Using the night sky for cover, he easily leapt across the street and onto the roof of the building. His landing caused a slight thud, and the guard outside heard it. He stepped forward a little and called out, "Who's there?" He held up a pistol and began scanning the area. The figure climbed down into the alley they had come out of and looked towards one of the street lamps. The lamps were electric, mere child's play to manipulate.

He concentrated on a single light, and it soon flickered off. The other lights did so as well, and he watched as the grunt looked around frantically in the dark. The figure picked up a piece of asphalt, worn away from the street by weathering. It was a decent size, enough to cover his entire palm, and he let it fall to the ground. The White Fang grunt whirled around in the direction of the noise and fired two shots, easily missing their unknown target.

_'Obviously, he doesn't have night vision like most Faunus do.'_ The White Fang member moved closer to the alley, unable to see his adversary. The figure watched as he approached slowly, until he stopped only three feet in front of him when another member showed up.

"Hey, we heard gunfire. Is everything all right?"

"Yeah, I thought I-WHA!" The White Fang member didn't get to finish his sentence as he was suddenly pulled back into the dark alley way. The second member could hear the sounds of punches being traded, a few bones being broken as well, and heard a body slump to the ground against the brick wall. He quickly drew his weapon, a red serrated sword and scanned the area. He apparently didn't have night vision either, judging by the way he was frantically looking around. The grunt's breathing stopped short as he heard a long, metallic sound being drawn out, the sound of metal against metal.

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Inside the Dust shop, the leading member was keeping an eye on the store manager, a middle-aged man with very short brown hair. He heard gunfire outside a few minutes ago and sent one of the others to see what the problem was. "Where are they?" he asked to himself? "How long does it take to go outside, see what's the matter, then come back in and give a report?"

At that moment, the front right display window crashed open, the grunt that caused it smashing into a row of shelves with Dust crystals. The members of the White Fang stopped and turned their attention to their fallen comrade. The leader went over to his body and checked him over. He had deep cuts in his arms and torso, and he seemed to be barely conscious. "Everyone, get out there. I want to know what's going on. If you find anyone, don't hesitate to kill. Understand?"

The other grunts nodded and stopped collecting the dust. They drew their weapons, pistols and swords, and stepped outside of the store. The leader was the only one left who didn't have night-vision, all the others were a Faunus species that could see in the dark. He could only see a few feet outside thanks to the light from the store, but even so it wouldn't do him any good.

One of the grunts, out of four, went to the right and went out of visible range. There was the sound of two thuds, and two of the others decided to check it out. The lone grunt was looking around still, but yelled in surprise as an invisible force picked him up. The leader brought out his pistol, and pointed it outside. The two remaining grunts cautiously moved to where their comrade had been, and the third grunt was pulled back by the unknown force. The last grunt was now scared out of his wits, and tried to head back into the store.

"Stay outside!" The leader said, pointing the weapon at him. "I want you to stay out there, and find whoever or whatever is causing this. And you will stay out there until I say so. Do I make myself cl-"

Before he could finish his sentence, the grunt cried out as a white rope wrapped around his neck and pulled him back. The leader fired three shots into the darkness, and he could hear them hit their mark. A hand fell into the light, and a mask bounced into the light as well. He had shot his own grunt.

The leader was now scared. What could be causing all of this? The lights inside of the store began to flicker and eventually died out. Out of panic, the leader began firing random shots in the dark until he ran out of bullets. He looked around frantically, trying to find something, anything in the dark. He stopped as he heard the sound of footsteps slowly approaching from outside, along with the sound of metal being dragged across the ground. The leader looked straight into the darkness and saw two trails of sparks, barely illuminating a pair of shoes walking slowly towards him.

Knowing he was out of bullets in his clip, he frantically took out the clip and grabbed a new one. As he fiddled with it, he saw that whatever had been dragging across the ground had flicked up and was now covered in flames. They looked like swords, and they were brought up to reveal a male human face. The leader finally put the clip in but it was already to late.

The left hand sword moved, as if the figure were holding out his hand, and a white rope shot out and grabbed onto his hand. It twisted his hand down to the right when he pulled the trigger, making him miss. The rope moved up to his neck and began choking him, and the figure began walking closer. As soon as he was in arms reach, he released the leader's hand from the rope and used the sword in his right hand to cut it off. The leader could hardly scream due to the rope around his neck, and the figure pressed the sword against the stump, the flames sealing it to prevent him bleeding out.

The figure pulled him closer, and spoke in a rough and gravelly voice, "The White Fang will not attack this part of Vale again, or next time I will kill whoever leads that group," he pulled him closer, their faces barely half an inch apart, "and then I'll find and kill you. Understand?" The leader nodded, still unable to speak due to the rope around his neck. "Good," the figure said.

He tightened the rope more until the leader was knocked out cold. The white rope began to disappear, until the man slumped to the ground and the white rope was gone. He picked the man up, and he noticed the shopkeeper was coming out of his hiding place. The figure tossed all of the bodies, the only dead one at the bottom, into a pile and noticed a flash of light.

_'Damn,'_ the figure thought. He quickly jumped onto one of the buildings and climbed up to the roof. Looking down, he saw it was only one of the lamp posts coming back on. He sighed, and made his way across the rooftops again.

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***Author shudders* How was that for a first chapter. Bet you didn't think he'd be this ruthless, huh? And it's not even at the climax yet! I'll put Chapter 2 up shortly, just out of courtesy so you can read it. I promise you, it picks up in the third Chapter. So R&amp;R, PM, and pleas be patient, I have enough troubles as it is.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Well, I said I'd post the second chapter soon. Just thought it would be on a Saturday. Aw, who cares! After reading chapter one you guys probably couldn't wait to see what happens next, right? Well, in this chapter it reverts to Teams RWBY and JNPR. Before I start rambling again, I'd like to say that this takes place after episode 8, but before the end of volume one. Also, I might have Sypher and-whoops, don't wan to give too much away. All I can say is, sometimes Sypher will be in the episodes, but mostly I'll have him doing his own thing on missions. Let's all hope for the best in volume 2 when it comes out! As always, R&amp;R, PM, and Enjoy!**

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The heist from yesterday was all over the news. From what officials were able to gather, a group of White Fang members attempted to steal Dust from the shop but were thwarted by an unknown person. They questioned the man about the vigilante, who only said, "I could not see his face clearly, but to me it looked like the devil." It was on every news channel, radio station and newspaper. Many were saying that this was karma for the White Fang, but others said that this figure was a Faunus killer, starting with the more dangerous ones and leaving the defenseless ones for later. It was especially a huge topic at Beacon Academy.

Currently in their dorm room, three-quarters of Team RWBY were enjoying their day off. Ruby was tuning her weapon, Crescent Rose; after the fight against the Nevermore and Death Stalker, she figured her weapon could use one before it got too badly damaged.

Weiss was also cleaning her weapon, Myrtenaster. She was wiping the blade clean, making sure that it would be ready when she needed it next.

And Blake was reading one of her favorite books. She was totally immersed in the story; so much, in fact, that she jumped a little when Yang came barging in through the door with a newspaper in hand.

"Guys! You are not going to believe what happened last night!" She showed the cover of the newspaper to them and Weiss took it out of her hands.

"White Fang attempt robbery, thwarted by unknown vigilante?" Ruby dropped down from her bunk and looked at the newspaper.

"Members of the White Fang attempted to rob a Dust shop in midtown Vale around 10:30 last night," she read. "According to the shopkeeper, who was still there doing last minute inventory checks, said that there were approximately seven of the members. However, just as the heist began, their numbers began to get smaller as an unknown person began to pick them off one by one. He also says that this unknown person nearly killed the leader of the small group, using two swords that were on fire to cut off one of his hands and burn it shut."

Blake walked over and asked to see it. As she examined it, Yang said, "From what I heard, this isn't the first time. In the West, there have been reports of entire hordes of Grimm and groups of the White Fang turning up dead. Some of the White Fang live, though, but they eventually die from shock or blood loss."

"According to this," Blake said, "only three of the seven members died: one from multiple large cuts that caused too much blood loss, another that died from multiple bullet shots to the torso, and the leader who fell into a comatose state and died of shock after his hand was taken off."

"It almost makes you feel sorry for them," Yang said.

"_Almost_," Weiss said, stressing the word. "Even though no one deserves that kind of brutality, the White Fang are still terrorists."

Blake was about to say something when someone knocked on their door. Yang opened it and found Jaune and Pyrrha were on the other side. "Hey Jaune, Pyrrha, what's up?"

"Have you guys heard about last night?" Jaune asked, looking a little worried.

Blake showed them the newspaper and Pyrrha said, "We heard about it, too. There are many rumors concerning this unknown person."

"Obviously," Weiss said, "he's a vigilante, an anti-hero if you will."

"Not from what we've heard," Jaune said. "I heard from some of the teachers that this guy might be a rogue Huntsman." This worried them all, sending chills down their spines. "What's more, I heard from one of Velvet Scarlatina's friends that he's a Faunus Killer, that he's going after the White Fang and then the rest of the Faunus population after their gone."

"Isn't anyone doing anything about it?" Ruby asked, now seriously worried.

"That's actually why we came by," Pyrrha said. "Professor Ozpin wanted both of our teams to meet him in his office regarding this matter."

"We're still trying to persuade Nora to get out of bed," Jaune added. "Ren's trying to tempt her with some of her favorite things." They heard a scream come from Team JNPR's room, along with a crash.

"I think we better help him," Jaune said, "we'll meet you at Ozpin's office." Jaune and Pyrrha opened the door, and could see Nora on Ren's back, laughing, for a split second before the door closed. The members of Team RWBY were silent, as the sound of laughter, yelling, and the occasional crash sounded from the other room.

"Well," Yang said, breaking the silence between them, "shall we get going to Ozpin's office?" The others agreed and they walked out of their rooms, trying to ignore Jaune's yelling and Nora screaming. After they arrived at Professor Ozpin's office, they knocked on his door and waited for him to answer.

After a few minutes of waiting, no one had answered and Team JNPR arrived. Ren and Jaune looked tired, panting a little and looking ready to collapse. Pyrrha also looked a little worn out, but not as much as the boys. Nora, on the other hand, was bouncing with energy and smiling. When Blake asked what happened, Ren only replied, "Trust me, you do not want to know."

"Ah, here you all are." The two teams looked to where the voice came from and saw Professor Ozpin walking towards them, a cane in one hand and a scroll* in the other.

"Professor Ozpin, you wanted to see us?" Ruby asked.

"I did," Professor Ozpin said. "I trust you are all familiar with last night's incident." They nodded, and Ozpin continued, "Well, I want to assure you that these rumors of this man being a killer are far from the truth. However, that is not the matter I wanted to discuss. I want to send both of your teams to bring this man to me."

Both teams looked shocked, save for Nora, and they all burst into questions. Ozpin put the scroll he held into the crook of his arm and held up his hand, silencing them.

"I understand why you're all upset, but I know who this person is, and it is crucial that he be brought back alive. I can't trust many of the other teams with this, especially Team CRDL. You eight are, in my opinion, the best teams to handle this."

The two teams looked between themselves, and Ruby said, "I'm in."

Yang joined in too, "If Ruby goes, I go."

Jaune stepped forward, "I'm going too."

The others soon joined in, and Ozpin nodded with a slight smile. "Very well," he said, "tonight, both Teams RWBY and JNPR will be patrolling Vale. You have permission to engage, but you must bring him back alive, and preferably conscious. I will expect to see you all once you have him apprehended." Professor Ozpin moved past them, unlocked the door to his office, and went in.

"Okay, we now have our mission," Ruby said, "I say we head out around sundown and split into teams of two. We'll search the whole city, and when one of us finds him, we'll contact the others and take him on together."

As Ruby explained her plan the others nodded in agreement, even earning a small smile from Weiss. "Then it's settled," Yang said, giving Ruby a hard pat on the back, "we head out in...how long until sundown?"

"About seven, maybe eight hours," Blake said.

"Okay, then let's enjoy the rest of our day off, then head out!" Ruby said. They rushed back to their dorms, almost running into Glenda Goodwitch on the way. She looked at the two teams as they raced away from Professor Ozpin's office, where she was going. Suspecting something amiss, whether it was from the eight who passed by her or from Ozpin himself, she continued walking towards Ozpin's office.

She knocked on the door only once and Professor Ozpin opened it. "Ah, Glenda," he said, walking back into the office so she could enter, "perfect timing. What new information have you brought me?" She brought out her scroll and scrolled through the info. "This vigilante," she said, sending over some choice news articles and files, "is quite elusive, but I was able to find some information regarding the recent attack. I was also able to find this."

She sent over a photograph and Ozpin looked at it closely. The image was slightly out of focus, but it clearly depicted a male, wearing a dull green jacket, tan pants, and also two swords strapped to his back.

"This is him?" Ozpin asked, zooming in on the face.

"It's him," she replied, "Sypher Woods. The poor boy, lost almost his entire family." For once, Ozpin looked shocked.

"The entire Woods family?" He sighed, bringing his thumb and index finger up to the bridge of his nose, "I can't believe it."

"Not all of them sir," Glenda said, sending over two more files. "Two others survived: his mother, Janine, and his younger sister, Emily." Ozpin studied the files closely as Glenda continued, "His mother was hospitalized for the past ten years, but she's barely been able recover." Ozpin sighed as he looked at her picture, last taken around ten to eleven years. He imagined how she must look now, in her current state.

"As for his sister, she stayed by their mother's side every day."

"For the past ten years?" Ozpin asked again, this time worry and concern in his voice. Glenda had rarely heard that tone in his voice, causing her to hesitate, but nod in response.

"She even took to sleeping in the bed next to her mother's so that she never had to leave. She never left for anything, not even to get an education."

Ozpin shook his head, "How you and your family have managed to live, Sypher, I have no idea. But may the Lord give you strength." He said that quite loudly, and Ozpin turned in his chair, going back to the picture of Sypher.

He looked up at the security camera, which was used in case someone decided to break into his office and saw a flashing green light next to the lens. He stared at it for a few seconds until it turned red, back to its usual color.

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***-scrolls are the holo-tablet things that you see Glenda Goodwitch and Ozpin use. I just wanted to get that straight before anyone complains about it. And if you don't believe me, look up "Scrolls" in the RWBY wiki.**

**Okay, so now that the teams have been given their mission, in chapter three it is confrontation time! Also, sorry if I misspelled Pyrrha's name. R&amp;R, PM, and hope you stick around for more.**


	3. Chapter 3 Rewrite

**Hey everyone, alright so I promised a rewrite and I found the inspiration I needed to rework this. It's kind of the same thing structure wise, but you'll definitely see some changes. I won't keep you waiting any longer, so R&amp;R, PM, and I hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 3 Rewrite

Darkness came over Vale sooner than expected, and the two Teams set out at sundown. The plan was simple. Teams RWBY and JNPR would spread out across the city in groups of two. To keep distractions to a minimum, the groups were Ruby and Yang, Weiss and Blake, Pyrrha and Nora, and Ren and Jaune. Team RWBY would go along the rooftops while Team JNPR stayed on the ground. If either group encountered the target, they would call for the others and keep him from getting away. None of them were to engage until all of them were present. As the sun dipped below th horizon, Ruby yawned. By this time she would have been in bed sound asleep.

"Hey Yang?" Ruby asked, turning to her half-sister. Yang was standing at the opposite end of the rooftop, and when she heard her name she turned around. "What if this guy doesn't show up?"

Yang stretched her back and said, "Well, then we'll probably do this again and again until he does show." Ruby sighed, turning back to the streets below. She noticed Ren and Jaune directly below their building, talking about something that Ruby could barely hear. Ruby looked up the street and saw Nora and Pyrrha run by on an adjacent street. Looking directly behind her she saw Weiss and Blake running along the rooftops.

Ruby hated having to stay in one place like this, and asked Yang, "So what do you think about this guy?" Yang looked at her and asked what she meant. "I mean why is he doing this? Why is he taking down White Fang? What's his motive? Is he going to attack Beacon?"

Before Ruby could ask another question, Yang silenced her with a "hush". Yang waved her hand and Ruby silently went over to her. She pointed across the rooftops and Ruby could just barely see someone running along the rooftops. Ruby pulled out her scroll, a tablet like device that acted like a cellular phone, and sent a message to the others: "We spotted him. Regroup and approach with caution." She put her scroll away and looked to Yang.

"You ready, sis?" Ruby nodded and they began jumping across rooftops towards the mysterious figure. The others joined up soon, Team JNPR still on the ground, and Ruby said, "Okay, now what?"

"Leave that to me," Weiss said. She drew her rapier, Myrtenaster, and turned a dial on the hilt until blue runes began glowing on the blade. She swung her blade and a frozen wind sped towards the figure. It landed right in front of him, creating a wall of ice that forced him to stop. He turned to face them as the rest of Team RWBY drew their weapons: Yang's Ember Celica, Ruby's Crescent Rose, and Blake's Gambol Shroud.

He drew his own weapons, two swords, and rolled his head in a full circle. They were in a stand off, neither group moving. He lowered his swords down to the ground until the blades touched the rooftop, and he began walking to his right. Team RWBY did the same, and they began circling each other like wolves preparing to fight. He dragged his swords along the rooftop, creating sparks that only created a faint light.

Ruby was the first to act as she used her semblance to run straight for him. In response, he flicked his wrists, causing his swords to suddenly catch fire, and block Ruby's attack. Ruby pushed Crescent Rose against his two swords and she was able to get a better look at his face. It was a boy, about 18 years old she figured. He had dark hair that also had streaks of light colored hair. He wore a white shirt underneath a green combat jacket that was open and had two pockets on either side.

He pushed Ruby off, and the rest of Team Ruby attacked. The boy fled, however, jumping across rooftops and trying to get away from them. They pursued him, Ruby and Weiss leading the charge thanks to their semblances. It wasn't long before Team JNPR joined them, running behind Yang and Blake.

"New plan," Yang shouted to them, "try to surround him and prevent him from escaping." They nodded in understanding and veered off, returning to the ground. Ruby and Weiss continued to chase him, Ruby almost catching up with him. Ruby used one last burst of speed to get ahead of him and brought out Crescent Rose. She swung at her target, who barely ducked just in time to dodge. Weiss was able to avoid Ruby's Crescent Rose and landed in front of the boy, Ruby moving behind him.

Team JNPR soon joined them again, climbing up the building and surrounding him even further. Finally, Yang and Blake arrived, and he was completely surrounded. His swords were no longer ignited, and Ruby said, "Alright, now listen." He turned his head in her direction and she said, "You're going to make a choice. You can follow us back to Beacon with no trouble, or we can take you to Beacon by force." Everyone was silent, and the boy looked around him. They all waited for his decision, and he finally let out a breath.

He stood up straight and put away his weapons. He held his hands behind his head and Ruby looked to Pyrrha. She nodded and approached him slowly, pulling out a pair of high security handcuffs. The others watched him as Pyrrha approached him from his right. As soon as Pyrrha grabbed his hands, he quickly grabbed hers and threw her towards Ren. She crashed into him and he attempted to escape. Yang got in his way, since she was the closest to Ren and Pyrrha, and held up her hands in a boxing stance. The boy stopped and the others moved in.

"No!" Yang shouted, making the others stop. "He's mine." He smiled and held up his own hands. They began to glow with a faint light, Ruby noticing it, and Yang made the first move.

Jab, jab, hook, jab, hook, she threw punches left and right, and each one was blocked. Since Yang had Ember Celica on, her punches would do added damage, but she refrained from using her shells. On one hook, the boy blocked and delivered a quick jab to her shoulder. He began to take the offensive, delivering swift and hard punches. Yang did her best to block, but some got through.

Yang was hit in the head by a hook and she stumbled back, the boy holding up his hands in case she made a counter. Yang turned around, wiping some blood from her mouth, and chuckled. "You're pretty good," she said, popping her knuckles. "But now I'm taking off the kiddie gloves."

Yang's eyes began to change in color from lilac to red, and her hair began to move on its own, as if it were on fire. Yang began to attack again, this time, pushing him back with every few punches. He took the offensive once again and jumped to the left, allowing him to deliver a hook to the side of her face. Yang stumbled back and the boy pulled back, panting. Yang's hair began to move faster, and flames were now visible in her hair. She turned to him, growling, and he readied himself. Ruby was looking between Yang and the boy, and noticed that the glow around his hands was getting brighter. Yang charged, but the boy held his ground, pulling back both hands.

"Yang watch out!" Ruby shouted. Yang threw her punch, as did her opponent, and their hits connected with each other. The roof beneath them shattered and broke apart, and both of them were thrown back. The boy landed on another rooftop, taking out his swords and driving them into the roof to stop himself, while Yang fell down to the street below.

"Yang!" the others shouted. Weiss used her glyphs to stop Yang from falling and Blake jumped down to the streets. Yang was lowered down and Blake checked on her. Ruby and Team JNPR looked to where the boy had landed and saw he was getting up. He put his swords away and made a saluting motion, then began to run off. Ruby chased after him, Team JNPR calling for her to come back but eventually following her, and she caught up to him in no time.

He stopped as she tried attacking him with her scythe and began dodging her attacks with ease. On another strike, he pulled out his swords and stopped her attack, just like before. "You are an adept fighter, I'll give you that," he said, holding his ground as Ruby tried pushing him back. White ropes began to snake from his hands and wrap around the points where his swords connected with her scythe. Team JNPR arrived and the white ropes disappeared as he twisted around to block the incoming attacks from Jaune and Pyrrha.

Ren and Nora held back, using their weapons to attack from afar. He moved out of the way and connected his two swords by the hilts, creating a double-bladed sword. He held it in one hand and placed two fingers on the connected hilts. He quickly pulled back and a white shaft formed between the hilt and his fingers. Near the hilt a red arrowhead began to form, which steadily grew until he dropped his fingers, releasing it like an arrow. Ren shot the projectile and it exploded between them, creating a red smoke cloud. Ruby charged through and saw that he was running away again.

Once again, Ruby gave chase and Team JNPR followed. The boy turned to see them following and stopped running. He faced them and said, "Alright, you caught me." He held his hands up, but they fell back down to his knees as he bent over in exhaustion. He began gasping for air as they arrived, and Pyrrha asked if Ruby was okay.

"I'm fine. What about Yang and the others?"

"Nora and I will check on them," Ren said. "Just keep him here until we come back." Ren and Nora left and Ruby switched Crescent Rose into its gun form and kept it trained on the boy standing in front of them.

"Man, he's more trouble than we thought," Jaune said, exhausted.

"I'll say," Pyrrha replied. "He was using aura to fight."

"Aura?" Jaune asked, remembering their fight against the Nevermore and how Pyrrha unlocked his.

She nodded, "He used a portion of aura to create that arrow he fired at us."

"He also used it while fighting Yang," Ruby added. "I saw his hands glowing while they fought."

"He must use his aura like a performance enhancer, like temporary steroids."

He stood up straight, clapping. "Very perceptive," he said, apparently having caught his breath. "But there's more to it than that."

Ruby saw his body emit a faint glow and she shouted, "Watch out!" The boy released a shock wave aimed at the three, but they all moved out of the way just in time. Ruby looked at him and saw him hold his arm. He whispered something she couldn't hear, and she took the chance. She charged forward, Crescent Rose changing into its scythe form again, and she swung the blunt side at him, knocking him back. She sped over to where he landed, holding Crescent Rose up to his throat.

"Don't move," she said, pressing the blade against his throat to further keep him in place. It wasn't long before the rest of Team RWBY arrived, Yang being helped along by Weiss and Blake.

"Ruby, you okay?" Weiss asked.

"Yeah, I'm good." The others approached the two and Pyrrha got out the cuffs. Ruby moved to the side, keeping a steady eye on him as she secured him. Pyrrha got him on his feet and Blake sent a message to Ozpin: "We got him." Yang was standing on her own now, and she walked up to the boy.

Now that he was detained, they were able to get a better look at him. He had dark brown hair that had dull green streaks, dyed most likely. He also had green eyes and fair skin. He actually looked older than everyone else, and was certainly taller.

"So now that we got him," Yang said, "there's just one thing I need to do." She put a hand on his shoulder and turned him so he was facing him and then punched him square in the face. The punch made a sickening crack and he fell, unconscious.

"Yang!" Ruby shouted.

"What? He's just unconscious."

"I believe Ozpin wanted him conscious," Blake said.

"Oh," Yang said, now remembering what Ozpin said. An airship came into view and Nora flagged it down. They brought him aboard then set him down in one of the chairs and a guard strapped him in. He pulled out a syringe and injected the boy with an anesthetic, causing him to groan as the plunger was pushed down.

"Is he going to be okay?" Ruby asked the guard. He nodded, but didn't reply any further.

"I think Ozpin owes us an explanation," Weiss said. The others agreed and they made their way back to Beacon.

**Okay, I hope that will do for now. As always, R&amp;R, PM, and I hope you guys will continue to help me fix some mistakes I may make along the way.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey guys, so I'm back with another chapter of SABL. I'll admit this isn't one of my better chapters, but I was able to finish this thanks to a flash of inspiration I got earlier in the week. So with this chapter, Sypher and Ozpin meet and some back story on Sypher's family will be revealed. As always, R&amp;R, PM, and Enjoy!**

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Chapter 4

The boy groaned as he woke up. He felt horrible, like his body had been hit by a bus. As his vision came back to him, he noticed three things: he was sitting in a chair, his hands were cuffed behind him, and he was chained to a chair. As his senses fully came back to him, he began to struggle against his bonds, succeding in only making the chair move a little from side to side. He calmed himself and concentrated, his body glowing with a faint light. He cried out in pain as an electric shock was sent through his body and he stopped using his aura.

"Sypher Woods." Sypher looked to his left, where the sound originated from, and he saw a figure walking towards him. The lights turned on and the boy, now identified as Sypher, got a good look at his surroundings. He was in a large room, a desk and chair in front of him and a panoramic window view of Vale; above his head were a set of large gears, almost like clockwork, that rotated slowly; and to his left was a man in dark green and black clothing, silver hair, a cane in one hand and a coffee mug in the other. He walked over to the desk and sat down, setting his cane and mug to the side and folding his arms in front of himself as he leaned towards him. "We meet at last."

"Professor Ozpin," Sypher replied, "why am I not surprised?"

"So you know who I am?" Ozpin asked, continuing to stare at the boy in front of him.

"Of course, who doesn't know the headmaster of Beacon Academy?"

Ozpin chuckled a bit, "How about we just cut to the chase?" Sypher smiled and nodded. "You're probably wondering why I sent out two teams to find you and to bring you here? Why I haven't turned you over to the police?" Sypher nodded, his smile dropping a little. "Well, I'll just come right out and say it. I want you to be a part of my school."

Sypher openly laughed at that, making Ozpin frown in response. "No," Sypher said, stopping his laughter abruptly and looking at Ozpin with a hard look. "First of all, I believe you only accept students who have already attended another school, like Signal Academy." He leaned forward a bit, "I've never been to any Academy, and even then I'm 18 years old. It's too late for me."

Ozpin took a sip from his mug and replied, "You aren't the first one that I've made an exception for. There was another student who attended Signal Academy, and after seeing her skills and talents in combat I allowed her to join my school-even though she was only 15." Sypher raised an eyebrow, both out of curiosity and skepticism. "You've already seen her, of course."

Ozpin opened his scroll and opened an image, holding it up to Sypher so he could see. Sypher recognized her as the one who held a scythe to his neck. "Even so," Sypher continued, "I have my own problems to take care of." Ozpin stood and walked towards the large window. "Yes, I'm aware of that as well. Your mother and sister." Sypher looked at him in surprise as he continued, "It's a tragedy really, what you had to suffer through."

Sypher growled in frustration and succeeded in getting up, although the chair forced him into a hunched position. "I swear, if you do anything to them-"

"Calm yourself!" Ozpin shouted. Sypher was suddenly picked up off the ground and set back in a sitting position. A rhythmic tapping sound came from behind him and Sypher strained to see the woman approach from behind, the sound coming from her high heels.

She walked over to Ozpin's desk and said, "The transport ship is almost here."

She looked to Sypher and Ozpin said, "I know about your mother's condition, and how your sister has grown up with little education. So I'll make a deal with you, Sypher. If you join my school, become part of a team, I will provide unlimited funding for your mother's hospital bills and your sister's education. I will also provide them with everything they will need to live comfortably in Vale. All I ask in return is that you at least try to make this work." Ozpin waited for his answer and Sypher noticed a white airship outside approaching with a Vacuo symbol on the side.

"Fine, I accept your offer." Ozpin smiled and nodded at the woman next to him, who held up a riding crop (no, seriously, that's her weapon-look it up) and waved it. A purple glow surrounded the chair and Sypher felt his bonds break apart. He stood up, flexing his arms and rubbing his forearms.

"Go," Ozpin said. Sypher looked up at him as he continued, "They should be at the landing pad by now." Sypher nodded and ran out of the office as fast as he could. Glynda looked to Ozpin as he sat back down in his chair.

"I assume you already have his team in mind." Ozpin nodded as he looked through his scroll and found three more files, looking at the pictures of the "leftovers".

* * *

Sypher was running through the halls as fast as he could, pushing past people and earning angry shouts in return. Even without asking, he eventually found the landing pad and saw a group of people in white armored uniforms pulling a stretcher and a wheelchair towards the school. He ran faster and arrived, but was pushed back by one of the men in uniform.

"Sir, step back."

"Let me through!"

"Sir, you need to get back!"

"I'm her son!"

"Sypher." The two looked at the girl sitting in the wheelchair, who stood up on uneasy legs and attempted to walk to him.

"Emily," Sypher said as he dropped to his knees and hugged his little sister. He looked her over and asked how she was. She told him that her legs were weak, but other than that she was perfectly fine. Sypher remembered how her legs were burned by the flames that destroyed their home, and how she couldn't walk for months because of the intense pain it caused her. "I'm glad that you're okay. I see Mom had time to teach you some more."

Emily nodded her head, smiling. Emily refused to leave their mother's side while she was in the hospital. Even though she told Emily that she would be better getting an education, Emily didn't want to leave her alone and helpless and chose to stay with her.

"Sypher..." He turned to the weaker voice coming from the stretcher and stood. He went over to his mother, who was laying down in the stretcher. She had a breathing mask on, and he saw her smile through it. "Sypher, you've grown so much." Sypher held back the tears in his eyes and the men told him they had to take her to the hospital. Sypher nodded and back off, and watched as his two family members were taken away.

* * *

Watching the scene from afar were team RWBY, along with Jaune and Pyrrha. They were pushed aside not too long ago and, thinking he was trying to escape, pursued him. Ruby didn't use her semblance since there were other students blocking her path, but when they did catch up with him they stopped to watch the scene unfold.

"What do you suppose that was?" Jaune asked, curious about the scene that unfolded before them.

"Do you think it could be friends or family?" Blake suggested.

Their guess was as good as hers and Weiss said, "I feel like I've seen him before, somewhere."

"Was his face on every box of Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes?" Jaune suggested. Weiss face palmed, remembering how she had to tell Jaune that to get him to recognize Pyrrha.

"No, I feel like I've seen him somewhere else as well," Yang said. None of them could come up with anything and they decided to see what Ozpin knew. Just as Ruby turned around, she looked back at the boy and watched him for a little while longer.

She strained to see it, but it almost looked like he was...crying?

* * *

**I'm almost finished with the 5th chapter, and the next one will cover Sypher's "initiation" and also introduce the rest of team SABL. For now, here's a little recap on the Woods family:**

**Sypher Woods; Age-18; Occupation-unofficial Huntsman/Huntsman in training; Background-after the death of many family members, he traveled away from his home in Vacuo in search of Grimm. Inherited a large sum of money from his family, his mother passing it down to him since she cannot use it to support them.**

**Emily Woods: Age-12; Occupation-N/A; Background-was only two years old at the time of her family's death, sustained severe injuries to her legs (i.e. severe 3rd degree burns, fractured tibia in left leg) making her nearly immobile for the past ten years. Since then, her bones have been mended but her legs are still tender.**

**Janine Woods: Age-42; Occupation-former Huntress; Background-after the death of her husband, she and her two children fled to the main city of Vacuo where they received medical treatment. Janine, unfortunately, was diagnosed with a severe lung disease caused by the smoke from the fire and is permanently bedridden.**

**Also, lately I've been feeling bored. Can anyone recommend any good RWBY fanfics to me? I don't care about ratings, I just need a story that's a good read.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey guys, I'm back with a new chapter for SABL. First I would like to thank TheMAO17 for recommending all of those stories for me, some of them I found really interesting, but the story React Watch Believe Yikes was really hard to follow-no offense to the author, but it was kind of hard to follow between mixed comments the group makes such as if the vehicle is a Warthog or a Puma and the antics that go on before and after the reactions.**

**Anyways, this chapter will cover Sypher's initiation and Team RWBY will be digging around for some clues, so I hope you'll enjoy it. I must admit, recently my writing skills have been taking off at certain points and then end up crashing down and rolling away for a few minutes, but I still hope you will Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 5

The six had no luck in contacting Ozpin, Glynda telling them that he left some time ago. She also told them that he was going to make an announcement today and that they were to go to the arena. Glynda left and team RWBY decided to make their way to the arena. Jaune and Pyrrha set off to find Ren and Nora, and RWBY conversed amongst themselves.

Ruby mentioned what she saw earlier and Weiss said, "After the fight he gave us and JNPR, after all that you think he was crying?"

"Well it could be like Blake suggested," Ruby said. "Maybe it was family and they were badly hurt."

Weiss took that into consideration and Yang added, "Either way, I want a rematch against him." Ruby still couldn't get this weird feeling out of her mind as they approached the arena where many of the schools announcements took place. A few students were already there, and soon enough the arena began to fill with more and more students. They were directed to the seats of the arena, instead of standing in the center of the field like usual, and team JNPR found them again.

The arena quieted down as soon as Ozpin took center stage and announced, "Students, you may have heard of the recent vigilante activity going on around Vale. I am here to assure you that the rumors of him being a cold-blooded killer are completely false." Many of the students began to murmur about the situation and he continued, "I must also inform you that last night, two teams have apprehended him and have brought him here." Everyone began murmuring louder this time and the two teams looked amongst themselves. "And it is with great pride that I introduce you to him, as your new classmate." The entire stadium, especially the two teams, froze up, thinking Ozpin was crazy. "Allow me to introduce, Sypher Woods!"

After hearing his name, Sypher stepped out from the left hand side of the stage and joined Ozpin. The students just stared at him, unsure of what to think of him. "Now, since Sypher can not partake in the initiation ceremony, which took place not too long ago, I've instead arranged for something a bit more simple, but still challenging." Sypher jumped off the stage, rolling his head around as he pulled out his two swords.

A door opened to his right and a Boarbatusk, a boar-like Grimm, ran out. The students gasped in fear as the Grimm looked around and noticed its target. The Boarbatusk suddenly charged, curling into a wheel and rolling towards Sypher. He easily dodged as the students gasped, feeling like he was in a bull-fight. The Boarbatusk stopped and skidded to a halt, and Sypher saw his chance. He shoved his two swords into the ground and charged-with his swords left behind.

The other students gasped in surprise as Sypher charged the Grimm and grabbed onto its tusks. The Grimm squealed in surprise and tried to throw him off but he kept his ground, his feet skidding across the arena floor. Sypher then proceeded to kick the Grimm in the stomach with his knee, pulling down on the tusks at the same time, and breaking off the tusks as the Grimm was sent sprawling onto its back. Sypher then jumped, the two curved tusks in his hands, and then stabbed the Grimm in its belly before it could turn over. It squealed as it tried to escape, but Sypher stopped it by taking one of the tusks and stabbing it through its jaw, causing it to twitch for a few seconds before stopping and beginning to evaporate.

Sypher stood, letting go of the tusks and returning to his swords. As he picked them up, another door opened to his left and an Ursa lumbered out. It stood on its hind legs, its head just barely reaching the bottom row of seats, and roared. Sypher connected his two swords and created an arrow using his aura, and held his position as more Dust began to pool into the arrowhead. The Ursa roared again and charged, falling onto all fours, and Sypher released the arrow. It shot straight for its target, which made no attempt to dodge, and the arrow exploded in its face.

The Ursa roared in anger, going back up onto its hind legs, and Sypher ran for its legs. He separated the two swords and struck one of its legs, cutting about halfway through before getting stuck. The Ursa roared in pain and Sypher quickly swung the other sword at the opposite side of the leg. It went through halfway as well, but it was higher than the first cut, causing the Ursa to stumble and fall as its leg broke from its own weight. Sypher retrieved his swords and did the same with the other leg, making the Ursa roar in pain as its other leg was cleanly cut off. Sypher made his way over to the front of the Ursa, the Grimm watching him in fear, and he held up one of his swords.

Adding some aura to his strength, he shoved the blade straight through its skull and out its jaw, breaking through the exoskeleton on its head. He removed the sword with a bit of difficulty, and Sypher knew there had to be at least one more. Just as he thought, this time two doors in front of him opened, letting out two Alpha Beowolves. They were larger than regular Beowolves, and there were several boney spines on their backs and arms. One of them howled as the other charged for Sypher, and he stood his ground. The second Alpha ran towards Sypher as well and the first began its attack.

It swung its claws at Sypher, who jumped back to avoid it and began his counter-attack. Sypher struck his swords against each other, creating a flurry of sparks as the newly refilled Dust cartridges activated and his swords were coated in electricity*. Sypher lunged at the Beowolf that had attacked him and slashed at its face, the electrically charged blades sending a powerful shock into its body, especially to its brain. The Beowolf fell and twitched as the electricity coursed through its nervous system and Sypher landed on its back as the second Alpha jumped for its attack. It came down on Sypher as he held his still electrically charged swords up and it crashed down on him.

The impact kicked up quite a bit of dirt and for a moment nobody could see what had happened. For a few seconds it seemed like the Beowolf was starting to get up, but as the dust settled the students saw a dull green glow from underneath the beast. The Grimm was lifted high into the air by Sypher, who was growling in anger as he used more of his aura to lift the creature off of him. His two swords were impaled into the Alpha's chest and his entire body radiated with a sage green glow. With one final grunt, Sypher threw the dead beast off of him and tried to catch his breath. He looked around the stadium, especially at Ozpin, only to hear silence.

He wiped his swords off on the Beowolf below him and returned his swords to their sheaths and walked back to where Ozpin was. Just as he reached the stage, he heard clapping coming from one of the students. He turned to see it was the girl in red, the same one who caught him the night before, and soon people around her also began to clap and even cheer for him until the entire stadium was cheering.

"Well, Mr. Woods," Ozpin said, using the microphone to speak over the crowd. "I believe it's time to make a choice." The stadium grew quiet as Ozpin spoke, "Will you attend Beacon and train to become a better Huntsmen, or will you continue to wander Vytal as you have done for the past few years."

Sypher already knew his decision, and he replied, "I will attend."

Ozpin smiled, "Then allow me to reintroduce you as the newest member of Beacon Academy." The stadium began to fill with cheers again and Ozpin turned off his microphone. "I would like to see you in my office," he said to Sypher, and the two made their way out of the stadium as the students were released.

* * *

With teams RWBY and JNPR, as they stood to leave they began to converse about their new classmate. "So Yang," Ruby said, "still want that rematch?"

"More than ever," Yang said with a wide grin.

"He's going to be quite a challenge then," Blake added. Ruby looked to Weiss, who stood behind her as they filed out of the stadium, but she had a deep thoughtful look on her face.

"Weiss, is everything okay?" Weiss didn't respond at first, but when she did Ruby had to repeat her question.

"I know where I've seen him before," Weiss said, walking ahead of the group. The three followed her as she walked to the library, and Weiss accessed one of the computers. After some frantic typing, Weiss was able to pull up a news article. "Here," she said, pointing to the first paragraph. "Ten years ago tragedy struck the Woods family in late August when the family, who were all together for a reunion, were attacked and killed by a surprise horde of Grimm."

As Weiss continued to read the article out loud, the others listened and gave reactions of their own. Ruby, who at first thought of him as an enemy, now felt pity for him.

"Losing your family," Yang said, "that's really tough." Both Ruby and Yang knew that feeling, and Weiss found another article.

"Well, not all of his family at least. According to this, his mother and sister were hospitalized after they escaped, but not much else is known about what happened to the rest of the family, or if there are any other survivors. What they do know is that Sypher, who left his mother and sister 8 years later, is the only known living Huntsman of the Woods family."

"What about his mother and sister," Ruby asked.

"Their mother was very weak and couldn't support them. She's been hospitalized for so long it seems nearly impossible. The Woods family had quite a fortune, though, so she was given as much treatment as possible but it wasn't enough. As for the sister," Weiss looked for more information and shook her head. "There's not much information about her."

By now, the four girls all had a new perspective about the boy they had fought. "So," Ruby said, breaking the silence between them, "how about we visit him sometime?" The others looked to Ruby, who almost regretted saying that before Yang supported her idea.

"I think we should," she said, "we should at least talk to him." Blake agreed but Weiss was still silent. Ruby snapped her fingers near Weiss' ear and she looked up from the computer.

"Uh, yes, I agree with you as well." Ruby asked if Weiss was alright, to which she replied, "Of course I am." Ruby wasn't convinced but they all left the library and went back to their dorms.

* * *

***-kind of like how Weiss' weapon has a revolving Dust dispenser, Sypher also uses Dust canisters in the hilt of his sword to give varying effects, including setting his blade on fire and charging it with electricity.**

**Alright, well I think I'll pull a double update for this story and be done for today. As always, R&amp;R, PM, and see you guys in a bit.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello everyone and welcome to the double update. Now for this chapter we will be meeting Sypher's new team, "ABL". I kind of realized that they could have worked as a three-person team (like how some FanFiction writers have been doing recently) and it clearly spells out Abel-as in "Cain and Abel", not like "willing and able".**

**Anyways, this will mostly introduce their weapons, but not necessarily their personalities. You'll only get to dip your toes in that pool for this chapter, but as the story progresses I will try to add in more details. I'm also going to put in another Woods family moment at the end, so without further ado, R&amp;R, PM, and Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 6

Ozpin led Sypher back to his Office, where they waited for a few minutes before Glynda came in with three teenagers in tow. "Professor Ozpin, here are the students you requested." Ozpin thanked Glynda and Sypher looked at the students.

There were two girls and one boy: the first girl seemed energetic as she smiled and swayed back and forth. She wore a red long-sleeve shirt with a magenta corset over it, white pants that hugged her thighs and stopped right above her ankles, red and white sneakers, and also had a bracelet that with a flower insignia. She had copper red hair with bright magenta highlights that stopped below her shoulders and had hazel-green eyes.

The second girl seemed out of place with her charcoal gray hair and dull blue eyes. She wore mostly white and black clothing, her shorts and shirt being white and also wearing a black jacket, while also wearing black and gray sneakers.

The only boy in the group seemed to stand out the most with his orange and black hair-it was hard to tell if both were natural colors or if one was his natural color and the other was dyed. His eyes were also a bright orange color. He wore a white T-shirt underneath an orange jacket vest, blue jeans, and white sneakers. He had a necklace around his neck with a claw in the center, and Sypher could also see what appeared to be a tail swinging around his legs. His arms were crossed in front of his chest, which emphasized his muscles.

"Sypher, allow me to introduce you to your team mates. Anna Hurst, Benjamin Lockheed, and Lizabeth Maddox." He pointed each of them out, Anna being the girl with the magenta and red hair. "These three are the remaining odd number of students from this years initiation test. Unfortunately, Benjamin's partner died during the test and they resorted to being a three-person team. However, I think you would be an excellent addition to their team."

Sypher looked to the three and recieved different reactions. Anna smiled at him, Benjamin glared at him, and Lizabeth seemed to not care at all. "Tommorow I will announce your official team status, but until then, I suggest the four of you get to know each other." Ozpin handed him a key and told them where the dorm they'd be staying in was. He let them loose and they started searching for the dorms. It was silent between the four of them as they made their way down and Sypher looked among his new team mates.

Looking to Benjamin, who was just in ahead of him, he noticed that he did have a tail which was a mix of orange, black, and white. Once they reached the dorm, Sypher unlocked the door and they got their first look at their new room. There were four beds lined up, and they all claimed a bed. From left to right the order went as follows: Benjamin, Lizabeth, Anna, and Sypher. Anna was the first to claim her bed, doing a jump as she sat down on the bed. Sypher stood by his bed as the others got settled and he began to think about what to say.

He cleared his throat, trying to get their attention and said, "Uh, everyone?" Once he had their attention he paused for a moment and said, "All right, since we're going to be a team we should take Ozpin's advice and get to know each other a little better. I guess to start off we should begin with our weapons." Anna was the first to respond as she pulled something out from behind her. It was magenta colored and when she flicked her wrist it unfurled into a fan, her flower insignia decorating it.

"A fan?" Sypher said, confused.

"A tessen, actually," Lizabeth said. Sypher figured she was Anna's partner during the test, therefore she would know what it was.

"Yep," Anna said, turning it over a few times. "But don't be fooled by its appearance." Anna stood and grabbed the curtains. She held them up and struck it with her weapon, the thick fabric tearing cleanly in two. Sypher was surprised, she must have had a hidden blade in the fan.

"That's not all," Lizabeth added, "she can throw the tessen like a discus and it will come back to her." Sypher nodded, hoping to see it in action one day. Sypher looked to Lizabeth and asked about her weapon.

She grabbed a steel rod from her back and stood as well, twirling it as it extended into a staff. On one end there was a metal fist, about the size of an actual human fist. "So, a staff weapon?" Lizabeth twirled her weapon around and swung it in the direction of Sypher-only for the metal fist to detach from the staff and fly right past Sypher's head and impact into the wall. Sypher looked to the metal object that was mere inches away from his head, and noticed a chain extended from the fist and back to the staff. Lizabeth pulled and the fist returned to the staff, the chain retracting back inside.

"A chigiriki," Sypher said, "very impressive." Lizabeth returned her weapon after shrinking it back down, and Sypher turned to Benjamin. "So what about you?"

Benjamin looked up at him and he stood. He dug his hands into his pockets and paused for a moment, then pulled out two fingerless gloves. After putting them on he flicked his wrists, claws one or two inches long extending from his nails. The others were impressed and Sypher nodded.

"I'm a tiger faunus," Benjamin said, holding his hands up and retracting his claws. "I don't need a weapon, I am one." Sypher didn't feel at all comfortable when he said that. It was like Benjamin had some sort of personal grudge against him and he was saying, "Mess with me and I'll kill you without a second thought."

Sypher cleared his mind of these thoughts and said, "All right, I guess its my turn then." Sypher removed his twin swords and showed them to the three. He connected the two and said, "I've been through quite a few weapons, but these are my favorite by far." He disconnected and returned the swords to their sheaths, and sat down on the edge of the bed.

"So is there anything you want to say about yourselves?" Sypher asked, hoping to learn more about his new team mates.

"It's getting late," Benjamin stated, sitting down on his bed as well and pointing to an analog clock on the was only past eight, but Sypher nodded.

"Alright, if you guys want to turn in now I don't have a problem with that. I just need to do something first." He walked towards the door and spared one last look at the others-his new team. Benjamin was climbing into bed, removing his gloves first; Lizabeth was removing her weapon along with the belt that it was held in; as for Anna, she was watching Sypher as if she was analyzing him.

Sypher left the room and let out a sigh. _'What have I gotten myself into?'_ he asked himself. He began to walk around campus as twilight fell until he reached the infirmary. He went in and found his mother and sister near the back, Emily noticing him as he approached.

"Sypher!" Emily said loud enough for their mother to hear. She turned her head and smiled as he reached them and sat down.

"How are you feeling?" Sypher asked his mother.

"Better," she replied, her voice stronger than last time.

"I don't know Mom," Sypher said, sighing and closing his eyes. "Maybe I shouldn't have taken Ozpin's offer. You know I'm already a great Huntsman, and I've already killed more than my 'fair share' of Grimm."

"But here you can become even greater," she replied. "Sypher," she held a hand up to his face which he took and placed it on his cheek, "your favorite story was the Green Knight, and now look at you: practically a knight in shining armor."

"Minus the armor," Sypher said jokingly, making his mother giggle and cough a bit.

"Sypher, promise me that you will keep those in your team safe." Sypher nodded without hesitation and he told her to get some sleep. Once she drifted off, Sypher turned to Emily, who sat on the bed opposite their mother's.

"Emily, I need you to promise me something now." She nodded and Sypher said, "You remember that day, when our family was..." He didn't need to say more, she already knew and lowered her head. "I don't want that to happen to you."

"But Sypher-"

"Please!" he half shouted, almost waking their mother. After calming down he continued, "After losing everyone else, I can't stand the thought of losing you too. No matter what happens," he shook his head, "don't follow the path I'm about to take."

"But-"

"For me, Emily." Sypher stood and kneeled in front of his sister, like a knight would for a princess. "Promise me you won't become a Huntress and put yourself in unneeded danger." Emily was silent as Sypher held up his pinkie finger and she wrapped her pinkie around his.

"Promise."

Sypher smiled at his sister and hugged her gently. After releasing her Sypher pulled out a large green book from her bag, making her smile as he sat down next to her and opened it. "Once upon a time," Sypher read, "there was a dying queen who asked her husband to do whatever their daughter asked of him..."

* * *

**Alright, and that's chapter 6. Before any of you ask, yes Sypher is based on the Green Knight fairy tale. What's that? You've never heard of it? Well of course you haven't; it's a Danish fairy tale. Most of the stories you read were made by the Brothers Grimm, _German _writers. Sypher wasn't based on the Green Knight to begin with, but it definitely the closest thing. Here's how the story goes according to Wikipedia:**

A dying queen asked her husband to do whatever their daughter asked of him, whatever it was, and the king promised. The widow of a count and her daughter did everything to make themselves the princess's favorites (in some variants persuading the princess to have them stay at the castle), and then the widow told her that they could not stay unless the king married her. The princess implored the king to do it, and when his objections could not convince her, he married the woman.

As soon as she was her stepmother, the woman began to maltreat the princess. The king, seeing this, sent the princess to a summer palace, or had one built for her. He went there one day to bid her farewell because he was going on a long journey, to a great tournament. She told him to greet her to the Green Knight. At the tournament, he met no Green Knight, but on the way home, he came through a forest where he found a swineherd, and on asking whose pigs they were, was told they were the Green Knight's. He went on and found the marvelous castle where the Green Knight, a handsome young man lived. He gave him his daughter's greetings. The Green Knight had never heard of her—in some variants, he says she must have been thinking of the green of the graveyard—but makes the king welcome and gives him a gift: either a green book or a casket with his portrait.

The king returned home. In the variants with the book, the princess had not known why she had spoken of the Green Knight, and when she went through the pages of the book, he flew in as a bird and courted her; in the variants with the casket, she recognizes him as the man she dreamed of, and he comes to court her. In all variants, he visits her secretly, to avoid her stepmother, but her stepmother learns of it. In the bird variants, she puts a poisoned pair of scissors in the window; in the others, she puts a poisoned nail in the oar he used to row out. In all, he was injured visiting the princess and stopped.

The princess, not knowing why, is told by a bird, or overhears two birds talking, of his illness, and that a snake with nine young snakes in her father's stables could cure him. She got the snakes, went to the Green Knight's castle, and got a job in the kitchen. There, she persuaded them to let her cook the soup for him. For three days, she fed him a soup made from three of the young snakes, and he recovered.

In some variants, he went to the kitchen and recognized her; in others, she asked to marry him, and he refused because he had already promised to marry, and she cleaned herself up so that he recognized her. In all, they marry.

**I bet you can already see the similarities: the dying queen, the book, the knight and princess comparison I made. Don't worry, Sypher doesn't marry his sister. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, so R&amp;R, PM, and I'll see you guys next time!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey everyone, Chapter 7 of SABL is now up, and so is Chapter 8 after I put it up as a double update. That's right, this is a double update and in this chapter we get to see a bit of team interaction, as well as another OC that I've created. So without further ado, Review, PM, and Enjoy!**

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Chapter 7

"Sypher Woods, Benjamin Lockheed, Anna Hurst, and Lizabeth Maddox." The four students stood in front of Ozpin on the large stage, where all the students were gathered to witness the forming of a new team. Above the five was a large video screen, the faces of the four students appearing with the first letter of their first name appearing below them. "The four of you have come to this school, one way or another, to become Huntsmen and Huntresses. And from this day forth, you shall do so as Team SABL, led by Sypher Woods." The crowd of students applauded and Ozpin stepped forward towards Sypher.

"I look forward to seeing how you will perform, Mr. Woods." Ozpin took a package out of his pocket and handed it to Sypher. "It belonged to Benjamin's partner." Sypher looked to Benjamin, who stood between Anna and Lizabeth, and noticed he was loking at the object. Sypher took it and opened it, revealing a golden bishop piece.

Ozpin walked away and the students began to disperse, so Sypher decided to ask Benjamin more about his partner later that day. Glynda gave the new team a schedule for their classes, and noticed that they had Human and Faunus History with Professor Oobleck, followed by Grimm Studies with Professor Port. There were a few other classes that covered survival techniques, combat, and Dust, but the first two lasted twice as long. Glynda told them that they would begin classes tomorrow at 9 am, "sharp". Since it was only noon, Anna suggested that they go out to eat.

"This is a special occasion," she said, attempting to persuade the other three. "We're now an official team which in my opinion calls for at least a team lunch together." Sypher looked to the other two, but they didn't seem to care much.

"Alright, Anna, did you have anywhere in mind?" A smile began to grow on her face and she told them about a local resturaunt called Huntsmen's Pub. It wasn't a real pub, but was actually a family resturaunt that had great food and atmosphere. The group decided to go and Anna led the way. After making their way into the main city and after 20 minutes of walking, the group arrived at Huntsmen's Pub. They went in and a waitress directed them to a booth seat. Sypher and Anna sat on one side while Benjamin and Lizabeth sat opposite them, the girls taking the inside seat. They ordered drinks to start off with and eventually ordered their food.

As they waited for their food to arrive, Sypher noticed Anna was checking the time very frequently. "So Anna," he asked, finally deciding to see what was up, "why'd you choose this resturaunt?"

She checked her scroll one last time and said, "You'll see."

After another minute or so, someone screamed near the entrance, prompting Benjamin and Sypher to look in that direction. A group of armed men were walking in, and many of the resturaunt patrons were panicking. "Alright, nobody move!" One of them shouted, holding up a rifle and firing a burst of three bullets. Benjamin and Sypher stood, reaching for their weapons, but Anna stopped them.

"Just sit down and watch," she said. Benjamin growled in anger, but the two sat down and prepared to act at a moment's notice. The group of thugs walked around the resturaunt, threatening some of the resturaunt patrons as they walked by. One of them walked by their table, and noticed Benjamin's tail.

"Hey Faunus, don't you know this is a-" The man was interrupted as Benjamin quickly held up a clawed hand to the man's throat, making the others stop and look over to their table. Sypher cleared his throat and the man looked to him, noticing the swords strapped to his back. "No way. Huntsmen and Huntresses? Here?"

Something was off with the way the man spoke, and the others began to back off.

"Am I late to the party?" Everyone in the resturaunt looked back to the entrance as a large, muscular man walked through the door. The thugs seemed surprised and the man cracked his knuckles.

"Oh no," the man that was closest to SABL's table said, "not this guy!" Sypher could definitely tell something was off and when he looked at Anna he noticed she was smiling and bouncing up and down excitedly. The man that had entered held his arms out and to everyone's surprise his arms and hands unfolded to reveal mechanical rods, wires and tubes. The false skin folded back as iron took its place, and all of the resturaunt patrons-including Anna-cheered and several of the thugs backed off.

"It's the Iron Fist! Let's get out of here!" One of the grunts shouted, and they all began to run away towards any exit they could find. The Iron Fist simply smiled and chased after the thugs and whenever he caught one he would use his artificial limbs to either grab and toss them clear across the resturaunt, grab their arms and twist them until they cried for mercy, or straight up gave them a jaw-breaking uppercut. Sypher noticed one of the men was running in their direction and he grabbed one of his swords and unsheathed it.

The grunt stopped dead in his tracks before he ran into the flat side of Sypher's blade, making the other resturaunt patrons look in their direction. Sypher stood up, continuing to hold the blade at the grunt's neck, and Benjamin and Lizabeth stood up as well, bringing out their weapons. "You really are Huntsmen and Huntresses," the grunt said, genuinely surprised. The grunt jumped in surprise when a certain iron hand grasped his shoulder and he turned his head to be greeted with the Iron Fist's smiling face.

"I got this," he said, holding his other hand up for the three to stand down, and he lifted the man off the ground. With a heaving grunt, he lifted the man off the ground and threw the man, who was now screaming, clear across the resturaunt and out the still open door. The resturaunt patrons cheered as the Iron Fist waved and bowed, giving thanks to the excited patrons. The three team member's mouths had dropped to the floor at this point and Sypher looked to Anna.

"Was this is a show?" Sypher whispered, and Anna nodded in response. Sypher shook his head as the cheering gradually stopped and the Iron Fist turned to them.

"So let me guess: you're a team at Beacon, right?" he asked. They all nodded, a little surprised he had guessed who they were, and he smiled. "I was too, once upon a time. I used to work with a boxing glove/light machine gun back then." He gave a small laugh, "They used to call my weapons 'Rocky and Clyde', after the boxer and the infamous outlaw. Unfortunately, I-"

"You had your arms chopped off at the elbows by an Alpha Beowolf," Anna interrupted, "and after your team brought you back you were fitted with the world's first bionic weapon, and became the Iron Fist!" The other three looked at Anna, surprised.

"So you know my tale?" He asked, sitting down in a nearby chair. The three members of team SABL sat down at their table as well and it wasn't long before their food arrived. The Iron Fist also ordered something as well, and the two began to talk once again about his time at Beacon. Apparantly, the Iron Fist was once a part-time teacher at Beacon, but he decided to move on to other things.

"So your first choice was to work at a resturaunt as a superhero?" Benjamin said with a questioning tone, to which the Iron Fist gave a hearty laugh.

"No, not at first. I was actually a mercenary at one time, but business has been slow as of late: no recent contracts, only a few small things not worth my time. So I decided that instead of sitting around and getting fat while I waited for my next call, I would work here and give the folks that come here some entertainment." The Iron Fist's food arrived and he excused himself while he ate.

Team SABL was already finishing up, and when the waitress came by she offered them some carry-out boxes and cups. They told her what they needed and the Iron Fist also asked for a box and cup, so she jotted it down on her notepad and left to get the boxes.

"Pardon me for asking, but do any of you have a scroll?" Anna immediately pulled out hers and held it out for him.

"Could you please sign it? Make it out to Anna Hurst."

He chuckled at her request, wiped off his hands and pulled out a marker pen after taking it. He signed it, Anna thanking him, and he said, "Actually I was wondering if you could send a message to Professor Ozpin." Anna nodded and he continued, "Just tell him that the Iron Fist is in town and if he ever needs a substitute teacher for his combat class he can always call on me." Anna typed the message quickly and sent it.

"There we go," she said, showing the confirmation screen. He smiled and the waitress returned with their styrofoam boxes and cups. Sypher pulled out his wallet and grabbed a few lien cards, placing them on the table. The team stood up to leave and they said goodbye to the Iron Fist, who had also paid for his meal, and they left the resturaunt.

"Well," Lizabeth said, "that was certainly eventful."

"I know, right?" Anna said. "I told you it was a good place."

"Alright," Sypher said, "I guess we should be heading back to Beacon." Benjamin agreed and Lizabeth silently nodded, so they all began walking back to the airship that would bring them back to the school. Along the way, they passed by an electronic store which featured a large flat screen on display with the news running.

"Our next topic, the White Fang have struck again," The mention of the group's name made Sypher stop and listen. "Members of the organization have been hitting more Dust stores recently, including one shop that was previously robbed by the White Fang but was thwarted by an unknown vigilante."

The rest of Sypher's team continued to walk as Sypher stared at the television screen until Anna turned and noticed he wasn't walking with them. "Sypher?" she called out, Benjamin and Lizabeth looking to their team leader as well. Anna walked over to him to see what the matter was and she too began to listen to the broadcast.

"Without the vigilante at large, Vale's Police Department is now struggling to keep the crime rate low. I hate to say it folks, but it looks like without this vigilante things are only going to get worse and the White Fang are only going to get bolder."

Anna looked at Sypher worriedly, and to her dismay he looked furious. "Sypher, come on," Anna said, pulling his arm. Sypher didn't seem to acknowledge her, and instead walked away from both of them. The three watched as Sypher passed by them all and continued to the airship docks. They boarded the ship that took them here and soon it took off, heading back for Beacon.

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**So I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, but if you didn't then I know you'll like the next one. Until then, Review, PM, and I'll see you guys next update.**


	8. Chapter 8

**As promised, here is Chapter 8. Now I'm going to warn you right now, this chapter gets pretty violent near the middle. As you probably guessed from the last chapter, Sypher is not too happy with the news about the robberies. Now, he's going to take matters into his own hands. Question is: can he handle it on his own? Read, Review, Enjoy!**

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Chapter 8

Later that night, Sypher opened one eye and looked around the room. He could hear light snoring coming from the others and slowly sat up in bed. As his eyes adjusted to the dark, he saw that everyone was asleep. He slowly got out of bed and, after grabbing his two swords and taking care to slow his progress when he stepped on a squeaky board, made his way to the door.

After opening it as quietly as possible, he turned to make sure everyone was still asleep. It seemed that way and Sypher slid out of the room, closing the door without making a sound. He removed his shoes and began running down the hallway, his footsteps barely making a thump as he left. He exited the school and began to make his way to the airship docks, where a few ships were coming and going. He hid behind a stack of crates, not wanting to be seen by the workers and guards that were walking around.

He made his way through the docks, hiding behind crates when necessary, until he boarded one of the ships in the cargo bay. Hiding behind the crates, he waited until the workers finished loading the ship and the door was closed. He felt the ship take off and began to wait until it landed. Once it settled, there were a few shouts coming from the cockpit. Sypher couldn't make them out, but they soon died down and the bay door opened. He waited for the right moment, when the guard took a stack of crates and moved them off of the air ship, and he ran out of the cargo bay.

He heard a surprised shout, probably another worker, but it was too late before anyone could react. Sypher, noticing he was on a rooftop, ran to the edge of the roof and jumped off, landing on a flag pole that extended from the side of the building, and jumped to the streets below where he ducked into an alley. There were a few excited shouts and Sypher smiled as he felt his heart race.

"It's good to be back," he whispered to himself as he made his way through the alley and onto the streets of Vale. In a short amount of time, he had found a fire escape and used a steel pipe to pull it down so he could climb back up to the roof tops. Once he was up there he began to run across and leap from one rooftop to the next one.

It wasn't long before he heard a commotion, stopping to witness another Dust store getting robbed. As he looked on he saw that these weren't members of the White Fang. Instead, they were humans dressed in mostly black and red. They carried pistols and swords for weapons, and quite a few were inside raiding the shop while only two guards stood outside the store.

"Not White Fang," Sypher whispered to himself, "but definitely a good warm-up." Using his aura the lamps began to flicker, making the two guards nervous, and suddenly shut off. Then the shop's lights went off, leaving them in total darkness as some yelled in confusion. Sypher dropped down from the rooftop, making a loud thud that attracted the attention of the two guards.

"Hey, someone's there!" One of them shouted, and the two grunts fired off a succession of bullets, just barely illuminating the street around them. Sypher had already moved out of the way, the grunts merely firing at open air, and Sypher unsheathed his swords. With a few quick slashes and stabs, the grunts cried out only for a second before they were silenced and frightening everyone in the store.

The store lights came on, illuminating the scene before them: the two grunts were laying in a pool of their own blood, already dead from the amount of blood loss they had suffered from in such a short time. Sypher was listening to the remaining grunts reactions, all of which threatened to make him blurt out laughing.

"Enough!" He heard from inside the store. "What is the matter with you? I leave to inspect the back for five minutes and suddenly I hear a-" the voice stopped suddenly, most likely from seeing the bodies. "You, what happened?"

"W-W-We don't know," one of them stuttered, "the lights just suddenly turned off and they said someone was out there."

"Uh, yeah, seeing as how there are two dead guys out there and I'm assuming everyone else was in here," his voice started out sarcastically, but as he spoke his voice began to grow more and more threatening, "obviously there is someone else out there! Now go out there, find whoever that someone is, and kill them!"

_'Well,'_ Nathan thought to himself, _'this just got interesting.'_ Nathan peeked around the corner, seeing a total of seven guys walk out of the store. _'It's certainly deja vu, if anything.'_ Nathan climbed up to the rooftop as quiet as possible, and once he reached the top he stood over the side of the building and gave a sharp whistle. He struck his swords together, like someone would with flint and steel, and his blades were charged with electricity.

The moment they saw him, another man walked out and looked up at what they were staring at. The man wore a white jacket and a bowler hat, carrying a cane in one hand and a cigar in the other, and his orange hair covered one of his eyes. "What you waiting for? An invitation!?" The man shouted, slapping the head of one of his grunts and knocking the others out of their stupor. "Shoot him!" he shouted, pointing at him with his cane.

However upon looking back at him, he was greeted with Sypher's foot crashing into his chest, causing the other grunts to jump back in surprise. Sypher leapt at the nearest grunt, slashing with his swords and creating two large gashes in his torso, and the other grunts began to take action.

Two of the remaining six pulled out swords while the remaining four took out sub-machine guns and began firing at him. Using the grunt he just slashed as a shield, he tossed the body at three of the grunts with pistols, forcing them to step out of the way and give Sypher enough time to take out the fourth gunman. As the other three began firing, Sypher ran in a circle around them until he reached the wall of the building across from the shop. From there he jumped onto the wall and used the momentum to propel himself at the three remaining gunmen, who happened to be standing side by side in a delta shape.

He knocked them all down and jumped back up to guard against a strike from one of the grunts with swords. Using both swords he pushed the one he was guarding against back and struck the other grunt, who was charging him from behind, in the legs. The grunt toppled over, unable to move, as Sypher finished off the last grunt.

The man he crashed into was getting up, straightening himself out, and said, "Well aren't you just full of surprises." Sypher noticed he had a canister in his hands, "Catch!"

He tossed the canister towards Sypher and held up his cane. Once the canister was close, Sypher crossed his arms and brought his aura up around him just as the man fired a projectile from his cane. The canister exploded and Sypher could hear the man laugh. Sypher then unleashed his aura, sending a mild shock wave in his direction and knocking him back.

The smoke cleared up and Sypher met eyes with the man. "Impossible!" he shouted. Sypher began to walk over to him slowly, the use of his aura draining him a little. The man took a few steps back but stopped, "Alright, fine. You caught me. Big whoop, kid." Sypher stopped and stared at the man's face. Something wasn't right, because the man had a smirk on his face.

Sypher quickly turned around and jumped out of the way as an armored van sped by, decelerating only for a moment to let the man jump into the open passenger seat, and then drive off with the man laughing. "So long, you little scrap!" he shouted as the van drove further and further away. Sypher coughed and wiped his mouth off, checking for blood but not finding any.

The sound of sirens began to fill the air, so Sypher sheathed his swords and ran off. He jumped back onto the rooftops as a police car arrived, along with a helicopter. Sypher stopped as it shined a flood lamp on him and a man over a bullhorn shouted, "Freeze!" As Sypher looked between the police cars on the ground and the chopper in the air, he had only one thought: s#!%.

He had nowhere to go, so he did the only thing he could do: he walked over to the fire escape, despite the man continuing to shout for him to freeze, climbed down to the street level and held his hands up as he walked slowly out of the alley. Three police men approached him, pistols drawn, and they forced him down onto his knees.

"Hey-" The officer silenced him and cuffed him with the same high security handcuffs as the ones he was put in when the others caught him. The officer began to list off his rights as he forced him into the car, but Sypher didn't listen. All he could think about was the one that got away, and how his team would react; how his mother would react.

The police car drove off, the sirens wailing as they did, and Sypher spared one last glance up at Beacon Academy before it disappeared from sight.

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**Oh, crud-you're probably thinking-now he's done it. Yes, yes he has. You're also probably wondering why he got captured so easily, am I right? Well let's examine the situation or a moment:**

**1) Sypher has drained his aura quite a bit during the fight, and to use enough aura to get him out of there safely would do more harm to his body than he can afford.**

**2) You have a squad of cars and police men on the ground, about five or six, all armed with pistols, along with a helicopter in the sky with who knows what is on board-it could have a sniper or a guy with a mounted ****mini-gun. What do you think his chances of survival if he ran would be?**

**and 3) Plot. It's all about the plot, which I intend to strengthen as time goes on.**

**As always, Read, Review, and I will see you guys later.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hello everyone, and welcome to another new chapter for SABL. Also Happy New Year! I know it's a few days late for that, but to be honest I was with my Dad for the entire week and he doesn't have any Internet. I won't say that it was bad, despite my allergies acting up (our dog and two cats shed quite a bit, so every morning I wake up with itchy, watery eyes, a stuffed-up nose, and eventually sneeze about ten times in a row), but it was enjoyable. I finally beat Assassin's Creed III (on my own account, I only beat it once before on a friend's guest account) and I went through several side-quests that I never took the time to do, and I also got Destiny for the 360 as well (unfortunately it requires Internet and a 20 GB hard drive, both of which I did not have). **

**But you guys don't want to hear about that, you want to know what happened to Sypher after he surrendered to the cops. Well, needless to say this chapter does more than explain it. But I'll let you guys out on your own. R&amp;R, PM, and Enjoy!**

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Chapter 9

"And I keep telling you, the real criminal got away as you were arresting-"

"Shut up!" The officer shouted at Sypher. They were now at the police department, where Sypher was being held in a temporary cell with his hands still cuffed behind his back. "We know who you are Mr. Woods," he said to him a bitter tone, "and I must say, for someone who comes from a family of Huntsmen and Huntresses, you are a-"

"Student of Beacon Academy," now the officer was interrupted as they looked to the open doorway, "and under my jurisdiction."

"Professor Ozpin," Sypher said, simultaneously relieved and not pleased to see him.

"Sypher," Ozpin said, acknowledging him. "I apologize for this, Officer," Ozpin said as he walked over to him, "I believe I forgot to mention to Sypher that Beacon Academy has a strict curfew after dark."

"He's one of your students?" the officer asked, skeptical.

"Yes, a recent addition to my school and one that I am not too fond of losing." Ozpin looked to Sypher sternly, and Sypher averted his gaze. "Why don't you tell us what happened, Sypher? I'll make sure he doesn't interrupt you again," Ozpin gestured at the officer when he said "he" and Sypher began.

He explained how he got out of Beacon and how he came upon the Dust store being robbed. He then detailed about how he dispatched the grunts one by one and finally how the last one got away.

"Even if he's not a criminal, he's still charged for several accounts of assault and murder. The men we found outside the Dust store, the White Fang from his previous endeavors-"

"And how many Faunus have you unjustly killed, Officer?" Ozpin asked, confounding the officer with his question.

"I was given orders to do so, they were rioting and-"

"And they were misguided, Officer. Faunus who believed they were protesting for the right reasons, but using the wrong methods. Either way, the deaths of all those Faunus during shootings and protests can all be counted as murder, the way you and your men openly executed members of the White Fang even while they were a peaceful organization." The officer finally fell silent, and Ozpin said, "Shall we get this settled then? I'd like to take my student back for a proper student punishment."

The officer nodded and he walked past Ozpin, who looked to Sypher. Sypher silently said "Thanks" and Ozpin left as well. After a few more minutes of waiting, Ozpin walked back in with the officer and the keys. The officer unlocked the door to his cell and then removed his cuffs, allowing Sypher to leave with Ozpin. Sypher allowed Ozpin to walk ahead of him and he followed him out to a limousine. Ozpin opened the door for Sypher and he got in, Ozpin climbing in after him and shutting the door.

"Take us to the docks," Ozpin said to the driver, and they began to move. "I'm disappointed in you, Sypher," Ozpin said, raising the partition. "I really hoped something like this wouldn't happen." Sypher nodded as he continued to speak. "I give you the chance to join my school, to better yourself and you throw it away like it means nothing." Sypher began to mouth two words continuously. "What would your team mates think? What would your mother think?" He began to softly say "I know" over and over again. "How do you think this makes you look? How does it make your family name look?" Sypher continued to say the same words over and over again, louder this time. "You need to stop walking down the wrong path, even when someone shows you the right one."

"I know!" Sypher shouted.

"Then why, Sypher? Help me help you, or else you'll just end up hurting yourself and everyone around you."

"I understand, but I just can't!"

"Do you think fighting these street thugs helps wash away the pain? Helps erase your memory? Because all your doing is staining your family's name with more blood."

"I just-just-Gah!" Sypher twisted and punched through one of the limo's windows, making the driver swerve a little from the surprise hit. He pulled it back out and cradled the now, bloodied hand, leaving behind a circular hole in the window that let in the cold, night air as they drove along. Sypher held onto his hand, unable to do anything with it until they got back to Beacon.

"Why Sypher?" Ozpin asked. "Why settle for gangs and misguided souls, when you can help the world-help yourself-in so many other ways?" Sypher didn't say anything, so Ozpin leaned back as they arrived at the docks and the driver pulled to a stop.

"I thought I was." Sypher said. He avoided Ozpin's gaze, but continued, "I thought I was making the right choices. Guess I was just blind the entire time." Sypher looked out the window and saw that they were already loaded into an airship, and the limo was fastened down by the wheels. It was silent between the two of them as the airship hummed to life and they began to leave for Beacon.

"Then will you let me open your eyes?" Ozpin asked, leaning forward. Sypher didn't say anything, but he sighed and nodded. "Then tomorrow, after your classes, you and your team will report to my office, where I will help get you back on the right path." He leaned back and the rest of the ride was silent.

Once they were docked, Ozpin opened the door of the limo and they got out. Sypher looked up at the school as they unboarded, Ozpin thanking the driver as he was getting out. Sypher began to walk towards the school when Ozpin called out to him. "I believe you forgot something." Sypher turned around to see Ozpin holding his two swords, and he tossed them to Sypher. He barely caught them but thanked Ozpin and continued his walk towards the school.

After making his way to the dormitory hallways, Sypher thought about Ozpin's words-about him walking down the wrong path, staining his family name with more blood, and most importantly Ozpin's request to "get him on the right path". He stopped right outside of his dorm room, sighed, and opened the door.

"So where have you been?" The lights in the dorm room were on and Anna, Benjamin, and Lizabeth were all awake. "Well?" Benjamin sternly asked.

"Not now," Sypher replied, making his way to his bed, "I just got back and I want to rest." Before he could reach it, Benjamin stepped in front of him and pushed him away.

"I'll ask again. Where have you been? And don't try to pull any of that _'I'm your leader, it's none of your business'_ crap." Sypher groaned as Benjamin advanced on him, still exhausted from his previous encounter.

"I went out for some fresh air, alright?" Sypher replied.

"Really?" Benjamin asked, his nose twitching. "Then why do I smell someone else's blood on you?" Anna stood up, a concerned look on her face, but Lizabeth remained sitting as she watched them.

"Alright, fine. I sneaked out and went to Vale. I wanted to clear my head, and I ran into some trouble."

"So you killed someone!?" Benjamin shouted angrily, pushing Sypher into the wall. He crashed into the wall hard, knocking over a few things on a nearby desk as Benjamin cornered him.

"It was a bunch of thugs robbing a Dust store. Was I supposed to just idly sit by and do nothing?"

"No, you weren't supposed to be there in the first place. Now let me tell you something-"

"Enough!" Anna shouted as she pushed the two away from each other and kept them at arm's length. "Both of you need to calm down right now." As Anna spoke, Sypher began to feel more relaxed: his breathing became easier, his heart was slowing down to a normal pace, and he felt less agitated than he was. Benjamin also seemed to calm down, but not as much. "Now then," Anna said, clapping her hands together and then looking at Sypher, "why don't you tell us what happened?"

Sypher nodded and began to retell what happened: boarding the cargo ship to Vale, the Dust shop and the thugs, his arrest, and finally Ozpin. "Which reminds me," Sypher added, "Ozpin wants to speak with us after we finish class tomorrow." Anna and Lizabeth nodded in understanding, but Benjamin just stared at him with a tense look.

"See," Anna said, looking between the two, "now was it so hard to speak and listen?" The two averted each other's gazes, making Anna sigh in disappointment.

"We should hit the sack," Lizabeth said, sliding back under her covers. "This can wait until tomorrow when we meet with Ozpin." Sypher walked past Anna and Benjamin, giving the latter a shove to the arm and a hard glare, and he slid into his bed as well. Benjamin and Anna followed as well, and Anna shut off the lights after they were settled in.

**So as you can probably tell, there is going to be some conflict between Sypher and Benjamin, and Anna is to be the voice of reason between them. Lizabeth...she's just there I guess. Anyways, I already have Chapter 11 in the works, but I'm going to wait a while before putting up Chapter 10. I found out that my multi-chapter updates were actually causing me to have less views than I should, so until then R&amp;R, PM, and I'll see you guys next time! **


	10. Chapter 10

**Alright, after a couple days I might as well put in this chapter. I feel like each new chapter I make I have less and less to say in these Author Notes. Oh well. Read on, fav and follow, leave a comment and Enjoy!**

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Chapter 10

It was now around noon as team SABL was struggling to get through their first day. Ask any one of them and all of them-even Anna-would reply it was not a very good day. First they all woke up 20 minutes before their first class, due to a lack of an alarm clock, which resulted in rushing to get ready and going faster to get to class on time. After that, they had two hours of Human and Faunus History with Professor Oobleck-a very hyperactive teacher that was always doing one of three things: quickly moving around the classroom, speaking at an exhaustingly fast pace, or taking a drink from the thermos he held in his hand.

What made it worse was the fact that the class was reviewing for a test tomorrow, and Oobleck was always picking one of team SABL's members to give him an answer despite this being their first class with him. They got a few right, mostly out of guessing, but the rest were answered by other students. After that, they were all given a study guide as homework and the class ended. After this, the team had Grimm studies with Professor Port.

Port was quite possibly the exact opposite of Oobleck: he took his time moving around the classroom and speaking to his students, and when he spoke he would get off topic and talk about his adventures of when he was a Huntsman. The class was painfully slow, and halfway through some the students were either falling or already asleep, silently talking with each other, or just messing around to entertain themselves. Sypher was getting bored already, resorting to watching the clock and count down every painful second that went by. He looked around to his team to see what they were doing to pass the time.

Benjamin had his head down using his arms as pillows, and every once in a while he would snore that made him wake up for a moment before he fell asleep again. Lizabeth was twirling her pencil between her fingers, staring off into space as she expertly moved them from one side of her hand to the other. Anna, contrary to what everyone else was doing, was actually making an effort to listen and write down notes.

"Now then, Mr. Woods," Professor Port's voice spoke up. Upon mention of his name, all four members of team SABL became alert and looked to the teacher. "As I understand it, most of your family was unfortunately killed by a horde of Grimm."

_'Damn it, why'd he have to bring that up?'_

He noticed his team was looking at him with different looks and Port continued, "Can you identify, using the diagrams behind me, what Grimm were present during the attack?" Sypher sighed and looked at the row of diagrams that blocked out the chalkboard. As he examined some of them he began to have flashbulb memories, ones that immediately get stored in one's long term memory and are triggered by emotional events; and these memories were _very_ emotional.

He began to see the events from ten years ago play in his mind like he was watching a home movie. He could see the Grimm, hear his family's screams, feel the tug of his mother's arm as they fled. He stared at one of the diagrams, depicting a large wolf. "Beowolves," he said, remembering how several of them led the charge, and how the Alpha struck down aunts, uncles, and cousins-most of them younger than he was.

He then saw the one next to it, depicting a bear-like creature. "Ursa," he remembered how much of his family defended well against the creatures, but some were overpowered before they could finish one off.

His eyes finally stopped on the last in the row, a large black scorpion. "Death Stalker."

_'Janice, take Sypher and Emily and run! Just go! GRAAAH!'_

Sypher was silent as he stared at the Death Stalker diagram. He blinked a few times and noticed Professor Port and quite a few students were looking at him. "Well, it certainly is interesting to know which of these diabolical monsters are responsible for the destruction of your family. Do you...remember anything specific?" Sypher clenched one hand tight as his mind went back to his father.

_'Take Sypher and Emily and run!'_ His father drew his short sword and shifted it into its crossbow form. _'Just go!'_ He shoved the three away, urging them to leave as he covered them. He shot a few Beowolves that came too close and the three ran off. Sypher spared one last glance as he saw his father turn his crossbow back into a short sword and charged into battle. He was eventually stabbed in the back by a Death Stalker Stinger, _'GRAAAH!'_

_'No!'_ Sypher shouted, pulling against his mother's arm in a futile attempt to save his father.

_'Sypher we have to leave!'_

_ 'No, no! Dad!'_ Sypher could only watch helplessly as the Death Stalker tossed him into a now burning house. Once Sypher snapped out of his memories, everyone was staring at him, especially Anna.

"Well," Professor Port said, sensing the tension in the air, "I'm afraid we'll have to cut this lecture short. Class dismissed." The other students began to leave, but Sypher moved quickly to get out of the classroom.

"Sypher!" Anna called for him, but he was already moving out the door. "Sypher!"

Sypher quickly moved through the halls as he pushed past the other students, and eventually moved into an empty hallway. He rested against one of the walls and tried to catch his breath, the memories from that day putting a mental strain on him. He couldn't get them out of his mind no matter how hard he tried: the screams, the roars, they all continued to echo in his mind relentlessly.

Then there was a hole in his memories: it began to grow quickly, blocking out the noise and the pain that came from those memories. It wasn't long before all of those memories were gone, and it didn't take any longer for new, happier memories to surface. Reading Emily the fairy tales she loved so much, spending time with his mother when she was awake, and watching cartoons with Emily until she fell asleep. He was finally able to relax when he heard footsteps approaching him. He looked to where he had come from and saw Anna approaching him.

"Feeling better?" she asked, stopping an arms length away.

"Much," Sypher replied, nodding his head. Anna smiled, nodding as well.

"Good. Now come on, we'll be late for class and you left everyone else behind." The two made their way back, heading to their next classroom and meeting up with Benjamin and Lizabeth. For the rest of the day, Sypher felt much better than when he left Port's classroom. He was attentive during class, raising his hand whenever he could, and also gave a few suggestions of his own. His team was quite impressed with the change, but none of them questioned it. Their classes ended at four, and by then Sypher's boosted morale had returned to normal.

Once they had everything ready they made their way to Ozpin's office while everyone left for their dorms. Once they reached the door, Sypher knocked hard on the door and they heard a click. Sypher turned the knob, revealing it had been unlocked, and they all went inside. Ozpin sat at his desk while Glynda was standing next to the large window, and both looked up from their scrolls as soon as they came in.

"Ah, you've arrived," Ozpin said, setting his scroll aside and replaced it with his usual mug. He took a long drink from it as the four approached his desk, and then set it aside. "Alright, I'll get right down to the point," he said looking at the four students while Glynda walked over. "Sypher, your actions last night did not go unnoticed." The other three looked at Sypher, even though he had already told them what happened. "The people of Vale look to Huntsmen and Huntresses for protection. But when they see this," the windows darkened and an image appeared behind him: a news article with a mug shot of Sypher and the headline "Murderous Vigilante Caught", "they see something dangerous, something they can't trust. Unfortunately for you, that is now what people are calling you."

"I'm not a murderer, you know that," Sypher said.

"I do," Ozpin replied, "but people nowadays are more convinced by the media than they are by someone's words. They believe what they see, and what they see is a criminal." Sypher lowered his head, "Which is why we need to repair that image."

Sypher looked back up and saw a new article, "Vigilante the New Student at Beacon Academy!?"

"This happens to be from today, and many people have had mixed reactions to this news. Some say that by letting you come here, you are a danger to the other students and will gain more experience in the art of killing. Others say that this could help reform you into something better, turn you into a weapon against the real criminals."

"And what do you say?" Sypher asked, wanting to know where he stood.

"I say this is the start of getting you on the right path. For now, forget about what other people are saying about you; from this perspective it sounds like we're doing a publicity stunt, transforming a criminal into a soldier. What I need you to do is to trust me." Sypher nodded, as did the others, and Ozpin smiled.

"Good. I am going to be assigning you a mission. If you will take out your scrolls, please." The four took them out and Ozpin sent over some data to each of them. "Your first mission will be an easy one, a small horde of Grimm have been causing some trouble and they need to be taken care of. Use whatever you deem is appropriate for the situation, but keep in mind that you will also need to rely on your team mates. You aren't a lone wolf anymore, Sypher, you now lead a pack and it is your duty to bring everyone home safely." Sypher nodded and they were dismissed, leaving to go on their mission.

As soon as they left, Glynda asked him, "Sir, are you sure about this? There's no guarantee that it will work."

"I assure you, Glynda," he said, taking a sip from his mug and as a result finishing it off."It will work. Sypher is a good kid and he will learn that just because he lost so many loved ones, he is not alone: he is never alone."

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**That was Chapter 10, folks. Leave a comment, add it to your favorites so I know you like the story, follow it so you'll know when future chapters come out, and if you'll excuse me I need to go pass out from sleep deprivation.**


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